Poultry News

Ministry Pursues Perdue over Imported Chickens

28 August 2013

CHINA - The Ministry of Commerce has renamed Perdue Farms Inc. of the US over anti-dumping and countervailing duties on imports of white-feathered broilers, following a change of the company's name last year.

In August 2010, Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Ministry of Commerce; MOFCOM) issued annual Announcement No. 52, deciding to impose countervailing duties on imports of white feather broilers originated in the US. The countervailing duty rate applicable to Perdue Farms Incorporated was 7.4 per cent; on 26 September 2010, the Ministry of Commerce issued an annual Announcement No. 51, deciding to levy anti-dumping duties on imports of white feature broilers originated in the US. The anti-dumping duty rate applicable to Perdue Farms Incorporated was 51.8 per cent.

On 3 June 2013, Perdue Foods LLC filed an application to the Ministry of Commerce, requesting to succeed to the rights and obligations of original Perdue Farms Incorporated in the anti-dumping and countervailing measures against white feather broilers, and submitted relevant evidence such as the merger agreements, the resolutions of board of directors, the registration documents, the articles of associations, the list of board of directors, the list of raw material providers, list of manufacturing equipment, list of customers, production capacity and volume before and after merger and renaming, relevant notarial documents and the certification documents from China’s Embassy in the US.

MOFCOM notified China Animal Agriculture Association, the petitioner of the original anti-dumping and countervailing cases of the above-mentioned matters, which did not raise any objection with respect to the succession of the anti-dumping and countervailing duty rates of Perdue Farms Incorporated by Perdue Foods LLC within specified time.

Upon examination, the Ministry of Commerce believes that, the existing evidence proves the merger of Perdue Farms Incorporated by Perdue Farms LLC on 27 September 2012; Perdue Farms LLC was renamed Perdue Foods LLC on 23 October 2012. The operation management, manufacturing equipment, supply of raw materials, sales channel and client base in connection with products under investigation remain unchanged before and after such merger and renaming.

Therefore, the Ministry of Commerce has decided that:

Perdue Foods LLC succeeds to the rights and obligations of original Perdue Farms Incorporated in the anti-dumping and countervailing measures against white feather broilers, and the anti-dumping and countervailing duty rates applicable to the products under investigation exported to China are 51.8 per cent and 7.4 per cent.

For products that are exported to China in the name of Perdue Farms Incorporated, the anti-dumping duty rate of 105.4 per cent and countervailing duty rate of 30.3 per cent applicable to the other U.S. companies shall be imposed.